Easy 1080p framing on SLR

soeborg

soeborg

Active member
Hi there

I was wondering if anyone knew about some sort of cap to screw on lenses that is cut out in the middle so you see in 16:9 instead of the standard.

With a thing like that it will be easier to frame time lapses made specifically for HD TVs.

what im thinking of is something along the line the thing that sits in front of the lens on this video camera:

http://www.digitalstreet.nl/images/Panasonic-GS230.jpg
 
Your wanting to recreate a 1920X1080 aspect ratio in your DSLR...

I don't think it would be very easy, or a good idea for that matter.

First problem is focus. When something that close to the lens shows up on screen, it is just a blurry mess, and it will actually feather out of your safe lines. Also, take into account zooming. As soon as you adjust your focal length, the preset matte no longer applies to that aspect ratio.

I would just say to frame up your shot, and then give your self 2-3 extra mm's of "safety" in your focal length, that way when you add letterbox or change your aspect ratio, you have some room to play with.

BTW- What you linked to, isn't actually used for anything, that is just a plastic cap with a matte cut out to cover up some of the port opening...It doesn't provide any visual matting or anything.
 
If you really want to do it then I'd use some kind of easily removed tape like electrical tape... across the rear display... as long as you have a clear cover over that... I would never stick anything to the LCD directly.

Some modern cams will preview your shot in 16:9 anyway... you may want to look into a cheapy PS cam that can do this.
 
The only place you could properly put 16:9 guides or a mask in a SLR is on the focus screen itself. That's the focal point when you are previewing, and the only place that you'd get a sharp image.

- Mikko
 
I may be missing something, but why not just shoot full frame and have the option in your NLE to extract the pice you want. You are going to have to crop your photos anyways, why not crop picture instead of black?
 
That's what I was thinking. Really, it shouldn't be too hard to imagine what it'll be like when cropped, especially when you have so much extra resolution to scale with.
 
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